Plant parasitic nematodes cause billions of dollars of damage each year to agronomic crops, vegetables, fruits, flowering trees and shrubs. Almost all major plant species are susceptible to infection by these pests, which typically affect the roots of host plants but also can damage above-ground parts including the stem, leaves and flowers. Nematodes of particular concern include those belonging to the genera Meloidogyne (root knot), Heterodera (cyst), Globodera (cyst), Pratylenchus and Xiphinema. 
Accordingly there is a need for a means to reduce the damage caused by nematodes. In the past, most attempts at nematode control have involved the application of chemical nematicides and/or of organisms such as certain fungi and bacteria which have similarly been found to exhibit control by killing nematodes. Unfortunately, due to their toxicity, many effective chemical nematicides have come under scrutiny from the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and other regulatory agencies. As a result, the use of many traditional chemical nematicides such as methyl-bromide and organophosphates has been phased out, creating a need for the development of alternative treatments for nematodes.
In this regard, it would be desirable to possess a nematode treatment which acted by a different mode of action, such that such treatment could be used in a complimentary manner with known chemical and/or biological nematicides.
Anthranilate esters such as methyl anthranilate and dimethyl anthranilate have long been known to be useful as bird repellents. Thus, U.S. Pat. No. 2,967,128 (Kare) describes the use of such compounds to deter both domestic and wild birds from eating seeds, berries, grains, fruits and the like. A formulation of dimethyl anthranilate has been commercialized as the product BIRDSHIELD™. As is detailed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,296,226 this bird repellent composition comprises an anthranilate ester and an alkyl metal salt of a fatty acid; rather than a fatty acid in acid form. According to this publication, the addition of such fatty acid salts results in the formation of micelles of such anthranilate compounds, permitting a more even distribution of such compounds on the surface treated and enhancing their efficacy as bird repellents.
Further, anthranilate esters have been identified as being insect attractants—for example, U.S. Pat. No. 5,296,226 (Askham) states (at Column 3, lines 20-23) that “insects are readily attracted to dimethyl and methyl anthanilate. Crops relatively free of insects were quickly reinfested after being treated with either material.” This finding is supported by the disclosures in U.S. Pat. No. 6,958,146 (Askham et al), U.S. Pat. No. 7,867,479 (Dunham et al) and U.S. Pat. No. 8,092,790 (Dunham et al) which show in Table 1 of such publications that sticky traps containing methyl anthranilate quickly became covered with hundreds of insects. The sole exception presented in these patents are house flies (Musca domesticae) which are repelled by the use of methyl anthranilate.
Rollo et al, “Fatty Acid Necromones for Cockroaches”, Naturwissenschaften 81, 409-410 (1994) discloses that certain fatty acids (steric acid, oleic acid and linoleic acid) produced in dead cockroaches function as necromones which will repel live cockroaches; while other fatty acids (palmitic acid) similarly produced do not exhibit such a repellency effect. However, the efficacy of such necromones as commercial cockroach repellents is questionable, given that cockroaches will engage in necrophagy (the consumption of corpses) if other food sources are not available—see, for example, Appel et al, Factors Affecting Corpophagy and Necrophagy by the German Cockroach, Proceedings of the Sixth International Conference on Urban Pests (2008).
While such art discusses the attractant/repellent effects of anthranilates (and related compounds) and/or fatty acids (and related compounds) on insects and birds, none of such publications discuss applying such materials to nematode infested soil. Consequently, it could not have been predicted that a composition comprising an anthranilate ester and a fatty acid will effectively repel nematodes.